Dear Mark: In last week’s column you mentioned that it was impossible to count cards on a continuous-shuffle machine. Can you instead count cards on a video blackjack machine since, 1. single-deck games are a preferred choice to count cards on, and 2. there is no one standing over you to bother your play or ask you to leave the game? — Jim G.

You are on to something, Jim, that of controlling your game environment without the hassle of some pit bull running you off the game. But it’s still not going to work.

Your biggest obstacle is that the rules of the video blackjack machine in the casino where you most likely play have one little deviation that will turn a winning session into a losing one: what you get paid for a blackjack.

Those one-player video blackjack games, which have been around forever, typically pay even money instead of 3:2 on blackjacks. Then, they are usually dealt from a single electronic deck, which also works against you because that single deck is shuffled after every hand rather than playing to a virtual cut card, and then reshuffling.

So how much is being paid even-money for a blackjack going to cost you? Because you can expect a blackjack every 21 hands in live play, the loss of that bonus will cost you an additional 2.3 percent. Considering that a live blackjack game has a house advantage of less than .5 percent to the knowledgeable player, this one rule change alone is far too costly, even for the best-of-the-best card counter.

Also be aware that some video blackjack machines round down on payoffs—any theoretical payoff that totals some number of dollars and cents is rounded down to just the dollar amount by dropping the cents in the win—thereby reducing your return. If you do happen to locate a machine that does pay the bonus for a blackjack, make sure your bets are in even amounts so that you can get the maximum value of a blackjack (a payoff of $3 for every $2 wagered). With a $1 bet and rounding down, the theoretical payout of $1.50 for a blackjack would be reduced to just $1! Here, you should always bet in two-unit increments. And, Jim, even though this game may allow you to pocket the bonus, it still won’t help you with counting cards because the deck is shuffled after every hand.

When playing under these conditions, what video blackjack will do for the Average Joe, Jim, is make for an excellent, low cost, practice session partner with which you can work on basic strategy.

Dear Mark: A few weeks ago I got into the final round of a blackjack tournament. When we got to the final hand, the three remaining players with chips, me being one of them, had nearly an equal amount of chips remaining. It felt like we were on the game show Jeopardy, and it was the final question. Both player A and B bet all their chips, so I decided to go along and bet all of my chips. The dealer ended up have a blackjack, and we all lost. The rules stated that in the event of a tie, the remaining players are each given $200 worth of chips, and four additional hands were dealt to determine the place winner. Naturally, my luck (cards) went downhill from there, and I ended up in third place. Getting back to that final round before the “playoff,” what should have been my correct move? I blame myself for losing. Nate S.

Instead of blaming yourself, Nate, how about passing it on to something Jean de la Fontaine once said: “Luck is always to blame.”

One important thing you want to remember when playing in a blackjack tournament is that all players are competing against the same dealer. The significance of this is that players tend to have similar outcomes on any given hand. In your example, if the dealer draws a blackjack, the entire table ends up with the same result: a loss.

One way to gain ground is by playing each hand correctly and having better cards than your opponents have. However, it is a lot easier to gain ground by betting and playing your hand differently than the others at the table.

I was once in that same Final Jeopardy position as you, Nate, and here is the move that I made. Unlike you, I pushed in all my chips on the last hand but for one $5 chip. The others on the table chucked in all their chips on the last hand, only to be wiped out by the dealer having a blackjack. My remaining red chip was enough to win the tournament.

Dear Mark: In a previous column you mentioned that it was impossible to count cards on a continuous shuffle machine. Can you instead count cards on a video blackjack machine, since single-deck games are a preferred choice to count cards on, and there is no one standing over you to bother your play or ask you to leave the game? —Jim G.

You are on to something, Jim, that of controlling your game environment without the hassle of some pit bull running you off the game—but it’s still not going to work.

Your biggest obstacle is that the rules of the video blackjack machine in the casino where you most likely play have one little deviation that will turn a winning session into a losing one: what you get paid for a blackjack.Those one-player video blackjack games, which have been around forever, typically pay even money instead of 3:2 on blackjacks. Then, they are usually dealt from a single electronic deck, which also works against you because that single deck is shuffled after every hand rather than playing to a virtual cut card and then reshuffling.

So how much is being paid even money for a blackjack going to cost you? Because you can expect a blackjack every 21 hands in live play, the loss of that bonus will cost you an additional 2.3 percent. Considering that a live blackjack game has a house advantage of less than .5 percent to the knowledgeable player, this one rule change alone is far too costly, even for the best-of-the-best card counter.

When playing under these conditions, what video blackjack will do for the Average Joe, Jim, is make for an excellent, low cost, practice session partner where you can work on basic strategy.

Dear Mark: I play video poker from time to time, mostly because I know the bartenders and get the "free" drinks when I play. I'm not an expert, and I usually play deuces wild or jacks or better quarter machines. In your articles sometimes you refer to 9/6 machines or games. What does that mean? —Glenn W.

If you notice, Glenn, there is always a pay table located under the glass of all video poker machines. This is, or should be, first-order-of-business-important to you as a player. The pay table reveals what the casino pays for a pair of jacks-or-better, two pairs, three-of-a-kind, flushes, a full house, etc. A 9/6 machine tells you that you are getting paid 9 for a full house and 6 for a flush, with one coin inserted.

The pay table should look like this, Glenn: royal flush 250-for-1; straight flush 50-for-1; four-of-a-kind 25-for-1; full house 9-for-1; flush 6-for-1; straight 4-for-1; three-of-a-kind 3-for-1; two pair 2-for-1; pair of jacks or better 1-for-1. If you stumble on a full-pay jacks or better machine that pays 9 coins for a full house, 6 for a flush, and 2 for two pair, you can expect a return rate—free drinks excluded, allowing you to play each hand correctly—of approximately 99.5 percent, making it a pretty sweet machine to play on.

As for identifying a good Deuce’s Wild machine, you want to find one that pays five coins for four-of-a-kind instead of four. With maximum coin play and perfect strategy, a five-coin return for four-of-a-kind gives you a slight edge against the house—a 100.76 percent return versus 94.34 percent if the machine returns just four coins.

Gambling Wisdom of the Week: “We’ve attempted to refute the endless stream of casino myths that turn people from competent players to superstitious gambling fools.” —Adam Fine, Strictly Slots

Dear Mark: Every so often we hear about someone winning the lottery or hitting the grand prize on a progressive slot machine, in spite of the astronomical odds against them. How is it that someone, somewhere, always seems to get lucky? What I’m trying to get at is that these jackpots shouldn’t be hit, but that doesn't seem to be the case. —Johnson T.

Any jackpot that has a probability of hitting—for instance, a Powerball ticket or a progressive slot machine—ought to eventually pay off if it is played long enough. When given a set of possibilities and enough trails, a favorable outcome should occur for some lucky bloke.

That said, there are times that I am not entirely convinced that every gambling probability will come to fruition over time. One such surety unrealized is the Special Bonus Keno ticket that many casinos offer. All you have to do is hit 19 out of 20, and you win $250,000.

Sounds easy, right? Well, here is where I am going to need some convincing that this is even a possibility. Here’s the arithmetic, Johnson: If you were to play one keno ticket per second, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, according to laws of probability, you would catch 19 out of 20 once every 93,420,116 years. Oh, and the odds of hitting it? Drum roll please . . . two quadrillion, 946 trillion, 096 billion, 780 million to one.

So, should you even be playing? As long as you realize that hitting “the big one” is a never-in-your-lifetime probability, I am not opposed to dabbling a few—and I mean a few—disposable dollars’ worth of Lottery Quick Picks for a shot at a once-in-a-lifetime possibility. However, limit those few-and-far-between dollars to when the jackpot exceeds the true odds of hitting it. With Mega Millions, that number is one in 258,890,850, which is an easier catch than the Powerball game at 292,201,338 to one. With jackpots in the millions, I can see how easy it is for players to inhale jackpot helium. But you need to ask yourself, Johnson, are the spoils worth the cost of the hunt?

Then again, even if your chances of hitting the big one are a teensy weensy bit better than zilch, you cannot beat those cosmological odds if you don’t play.

Gambling Wisdom of the Week: “There are card players and racetrack betters who are genuine professionals, but no one makes a profession out of shooting craps.” —Peter L. Bernstein, Against The Odds

Although Mark Pilarski has retired from writing “Ask Mark” (see our October 2016 issue), we will still impart his wisdom on all things gambling-related by publishing his previously written columns.

Dear Mark: When it comes to making the best bet in a casino, your advice has been playing perfect strategy at either blackjack or video poker. Here’s my issue with that. I am not interested in learning a new skill in any game that I will probably play once a month, for only four hours at best. But I also don’t want to make stupid bets that have a high house edge. So, what is your recommendation for either a game or wager where I don’t have to use my wits and still get a fair shake against the house? Cliff W.

Fortunately, Cliff, there are alternative wagers, so that you are not just limited to perfect play at blackjack or video poker when it comes to getting a “fair shake against the house.”

The best bet in the entire casino that doesn’t require you to use your noggin is to walk up to a craps table and make a bet on the pass line, and double odds underneath. It gets even better if you can get even higher multiple odds.

For instance, if you have a $5 pass-line bet and the point is 4, if you win, your pass-line bet is paid at even money (1:1), bringing you $5 in winnings. Your pass-line bet alone has a house edge of 1.4 percent. The pass-line wager alone is somewhat competitive against perfect play at video poker or blackjack, but not equal to or better than. So, Cliff, let’s enhance the wager to give it equal footing. By taking double odds ($10), you are paid at true odds (2:1) on that portion of the bet, bringing you $20 on the win.

The house edge is tied to the odds of the bet. At double odds the house edge drops to 0.6 percent, 10 times odds to 0.2 percent, and 100 times odds, all the way down to 0.02 percent.

Bellying up to a craps table and joining the euphoria of this fast-paced game need not be intimidating, Cliff, as long as you stick to a simplified strategy of betting the pass line and taking odds.

Also, Cliff, there are two bets on a Baccarat game that offer a somewhat higher edge, and again, with no need to use your gray matter—especially since you don’t even have to know the rules as the hitting sequence is predetermined. The house advantage is either 1.17 percent when betting the bank hand or 1.36 percent with a player hand wager.

Dear Mark: Why do casinos have jackpots on their video poker machines that pay $1,199? That seems like an odd jackpot number. — Trish H.

Think, Trish, of a $1,199 jackpot as the Lords of Chance doing you a favor.

A blast from the past typically on video poker machines, that $1,199 bonanza is $1 shy from you getting a mandatory tax form. At $1,200, the casino is required by the IRS to have you sign a W-2G before they can pay you. At $1,199, you avoid the paperwork. Although there is still a tax liability on all casino winnings, the $1,199 windfall is between you and the IRS.

Now for those of you might want to ask a slot attendant to be paid a $1 less on a $1,200 royal flush to dodge a W2-G, I’d say, “Not a chance.” Here’re two reasons why: accounting (the pencil pushers upstairs like things balanced) and collusion. Again, granting all gambling winnings are technically taxable, Uncle Sam getting wind of a publicly traded company on the NYSE in cahoots with players trying to avoid paying taxes would be jeopardizing a casino’s gaming license.

A little side note about “things balanced.” I worked for a time in the cashier’s cage, where, at the end of a shift, you were required to total out the casino cage. In essence, I counted down every dollar within the casino walls. We’re talking millions here. If an incoming shift supervisor is $0.10 off, they can plan on running a tape until they find it. Yours Truly, being dyslexic, ended up acquiring blistering speed on a 10-key adding machine by forever searching for that dime.

Although Mark Pilarski has retired from writing “Ask Mark” (see our October 2016 issue), we will still impart his wisdom on all things gambling-related by publishing selected previously written columns.

Dear Dad(Mark): I am getting a little jammed up here with work. Any chance you can lend a helping hand? —Your son, Nicholas

Today I must bid you a fond farewell after having the pleasure of writing this column for 20 years. So why leave the best job in the world after two decades? To help the son who is going to pick out my retirement home. I am undertaking what most parents would love to do but for a multitude of reasons can’t: lend a helping hand in the career of their child.

As a parent, I realize filmmaking is far from a sure bet as a career choice. But Nick’s past successes, from the early age of seven when he was involved in adult theater in over a dozen plays to a degree at the University of Michigan in theater/film to a masters in film at Duke University—all the while performing in 600 shows as a Blue Man in the Blue Man Group, along with accompanying multiple Grammy nominated artists on percussion—allow me to sleep well. I am not sure it is much of a gamble when he has plenty of out options besides filmmaking, like, teaching, acting, drumming, etc. I think it is a decent bet for me and my wife, Renee, to join him on the Pass Line of life.

As this is probably getting too long and becoming rather humdrum reading, I will stop here, only adding that I have no words to express how much I will miss writing this syndicated column. I bid you all adieu by thanking my readers for their comments and compliments. You have been far better to me than I truly deserve.

So, finally, what was the most often asked question I have gotten over all these years in the gambling business? It was when I worked on the casino floor. Nick, drum roll, please . . . “Where’s the bathroom?”

We at Casino Entertainer would like to thank Mark for his many years of providing us with such lively reading. He has been with us nearly from the beginning of this publication (almost 15 years!). We wish him all the best as he embarks on the next phase of his journey.

Dear Mark: Are casinos required by law to inform the customer what the slot return percentages are for their slot machines? Mary Ellen P.

Because slot machines hold some of the highest percentage returns for the casino, yes, Mary Ellen, consumers should know those numbers so they can make informed decisions about where to play. While every slot machine has an accounting system built in that contains payback data, not all states require their casinos to release or post that information. Some states break down casino returns by geographic area. In some, it’s easy to find out the average slot payback percentage on all slot machines for an individual casino. It’s posted right in the newspaper.

___________________________

Editor’s note: We researched New Mexico, Arizona, and Colorado state requirements, and compared them to a cross-section of those governing slots in Las Vegas (source: American Casino Guide.com).

New Mexico: New Mexico gaming regulations require that electronic machines at racetracks and fraternal/veterans organizations return a minimum of 80 percent to a maximum of 96 percent. New Mexico’s tribal operations do not make their slot machine payback percentages a matter of public record, but the terms of the compact between the state and the tribes require all electronic gaming machines to return a minimum of 80 percent.

Arizona: Arizona’s tribes are likewise not required to release information on their slot machine percentage paybacks. However, according to the Arizona Department of Gaming, the terms of the compact require each tribes’ machines to return the following minimum and maximum paybacks: video poker and video blackjack, 83–100 percent; slot machines, 80–100 percent; keno, 75–100 percent. Each tribe is free to set its machines to pay back anywhere within those limits.

Colorado: According to Colorado’s Division of Gaming, slot machine payback percentages range from 89.8 percent (1-cent slots in Black Hawk) to 96 percent on $5 slots, but these percentages include return on video poker and video keno (which usually generate higher returns).

Las Vegas, Nevada: The Nevada Gaming Control Board does not break down its slot statistics by individual properties. Rather, they are classified by area. For example:

These numbers reflect the percentage of money returned to the players on each denomination of machine. All electronic machines, including slots, video poker and video keno, are included in these numbers, so to compare Las Vegas to New Mexico, for example, is difficult.

Dear Mark: I disagree with one of your assessments/strategies that you should always hit a 16 against a dealer with a 7–10. Sorry, but I am from the school that you should always let the dealer bust instead. What is the basis for your recommendation? —Alex A.

You give me credit I don’t deserve, Alex. Hitting a 16 against a dealer with a 7, 8, 9, 10/face showing isn’t my personal assessment of how to play the hand correctly. I don’t own the math on this play, or trust my back-of-the-envelope figuring. The correct strategy for this particular hand comes from a set of computer-derived rules for playing every hand against every possible dealer up-card.

Here’s the arithmetic based on a kazillion computer calculations: If you hit this lousy hand, you are going to bust over 60 percent of the time. By giving the dealer a chance to bust out instead, you will lose approximately 70 percent of the time. The dealer’s chances of having a 17 or more when he or she shows a 7, 8, 9, 10 or ace is between 74 and 83 percent. It is for this reason that the correct basic strategy dictates that you should always hit your lousy 16.

Dear Mark: I enjoyed your response in a previous column, when you played referee on what Gary R. thought was a misdeal when the dealer had a 17, kept hitting, busted, but the dealer still took his bet. I am sure you would agree that not all casinos would have scooped up his wager. Anyhow, I have a protocol question relating to what should have happened next. That one extra card dealt now makes the deck completely out of sequence from when the dealer first shuffled the cards. What is the policy now? Does the dealer keep dealing or immediately shuffle up? —Tom O

Again, Tom, I played referee on Gary R’s inquiry based on the rules and regulations of the casinos where I had worked. I kept how I would have handled his scenario out of my answer.

This week, it’s time for a disclaimer: When working on the inside, Yours Truly did not necessarily make every decision according to Hoyle. I tried my best to remain consistent, but I will also admit there were times I would drift from black and white into gray.

I had a strong belief that customer service was paramount and that border decisions should favor the player unless the mistake was illegal or egregious. I would constantly ask myself “do we want lose to a customer for life over a $50 slip-up?”

The math always favors the casino, and when you show a little generosity and let the customer keep what technically isn’t theirs, the house still ends up getting it all back within a hand or two anyway. Believe me when I tell you that I have seen plenty of customers get into a tizzy over less, cash out, and never be seen again.

As to your “what happens next” question, had Gary R. been sitting on a single- or double-deck game, the dealer should have shuffled up after the incident. If it were a shoe or auto shuffler, typically you would just play on.

Dear Mark: Using Basic Strategy, I am a firm believer in never taking even money on a blackjack. I detest games that offer a 6:5 payout versus the normal 3:2. If one is forced to play a 6:5 game due to availability, is it still correct not to take even money on a 6:5 blackjack using basic strategy? Herb C.

I’ll begin with Pilarski’s Rule No. 5: Never sit at a 6:5 table. And I’ll follow it up with Rule No. 9: At a 3:2 table, never take even money/insurance.

Let’s begin with even money: Players who are risk-averse, or, proverbially put, plus valet in manibus avis unica quam dupla silvis (which, loosely translated from Latin, means, “A bird in the hand is worth more than two in the woods”), tend to always take even money. They figure this maxim points out that by passing up even money for your blackjacks, you risk losing a sure thing.

As for 6:5 blackjack, using the math of the game, and using a 3:2 payoff as a baseline, a reduction to 6:5 payoffs on blackjack increases the house edge by 1.39 percent. Giving an additional 1.39 percent back to the casino is humongous, making it a larger percentage return than the entire house edge on the rest of the game.

Furthermore, because the math for an even money payoff on a 6:5 game isn’t advantageous for the casino, the even money option is typically prohibited on a 6:5 game. Although I haven’t personally seen it offered, if you come upon it, then I am neutral on taking an even money payoff. Although its expected value (EV) is even, the casino still has a sizable edge over your play.

My best advice, Herb, is to let the casino pay their own light bills, and for you to take the 6:5 game out of your gaming repertoire altogether.

Dear Mark: When it comes to blackjack, why is counting cards considered a form of cheating? I look at it as someone who is very good at the game and no different from someone playing poker, like players who are very skilled at bluffing and reading the body language and facial expressions of the others at the table. ~ Gary

When it comes to counting cards, Gary, you don’t need to be a math wiz. All card counting does is establish mathematically the degree to which the as-yet-undealt deck favors the dealer, or favors the player. Counting does this by tracking the changing imbalance of big and little cards in a diminishing deck.

Card counters, theoretically, have an advantage of anywhere from .5–1.5 percent over the casino. A deck rich with high cards (10, jack, queen, king, ace) favors the player, whereas, an excess of low cards (2, 3, 4, 5, 6), favors the dealer. When that ratio favors the counting player, he/she bets more money; when it favors the dealer, the counter bets less.

Your assertion, Gary, that counting cards is considered a form of cheating, is erroneous in that card counting is NOT illegal under federal, state, and local laws in the United States; just so long as the player does not use any external card counting device, or persons, to assist them in counting cards.In their pursuit to identify card counters, casinos can ban players believed to be counters—sort of. It depends on where they are playing. For instance, in Atlantic City they will let you take a whack at counting cards. But, again, sort of. The New Jersey Supreme Court has ruled that players cannot be discriminated against because of their playing skills (counting), even if detected. Instead, the casino will employ “lawful” countermeasures to hinder card counters on the Jersey Shore. These measures include using eight-deck shoes, shuffling at will to thwart bet variance, and instructing the dealers to move the cut card near the top of the shoe on suspected counters.In Nevada, before you sit down at a blackjack table, you will need to check your brain at the door. There, laws allow casinos to operate sort of like a private club, so plan on being asked to leave for using your cerebral matter.

So, Gary, though counting cards is not “technically” illegal—or cheating for that matter—Nevada casinos can nonetheless bar the counter from playing blackjack by backing them of the game. Those who want to play this cat and mouse game to gain a 1-percent-plus advantage should expect a pit boss to come up to them and unsympathetically say, “We appreciate your business, but we are going to ask you to stop playing blackjack here. Feel free to play any of the other table games that we offer.” Translated, that means go play any other game that has a much higher house edge.

Gambling Wisdom of the Week: Something to moan out between grinding your teeth during this political season: “Didn't I warn you—Huh—Didn't I tell you one of 'em was going to win? So now, what do we do?” –Jack Norris, aka Blackjack —We used this quote last issue. Does he have another one?

Dear Mark: Are you allowed to ask a dealer if he or she is running hot or cold? Jenny S.

Of course, you can, Jenny. As to whether that information will do you any good on a randomly shuffled game, sorry, it won’t. Besides, whatever answer you do get from a dealer doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll be getting the truth. For example, if a dealer is standing on a dead game, arms crossed in a standoffish position, it is a certainty he or she will say “Hot!” That uninterested stance is a dead giveaway that the dealer doesn’t want to be bothered.

Likewise, some dealers will recognize a player from the past—for instance, a non-tipper—and will articulate, unequivocally, how hot they are, hoping the inquiring player will move along. Personally, I always found it amusing that most players would not wander off to avoid the wrath of my dealing when I told them “I’m hot,” but instead saw me as some gambling conquest to be made. “Okay, Buddy, take your best shot.” Yet, in the end, I’d beat them hardheartedly, but not because of my averred “I’m hot” reference. Their eventual beatdown was always based on the combination of the math of the game and their poor play.

Gambling Wisdom of the Week: Something to moan out between grinding your teeth during this political season: “Didn't I warn you—huh?—didn’t I tell you one of ‘em was going to win? So now what do we do?” — Jack Norris, aka Blackjack

Dear Mark: Using Basic Strategy, I am a firm believer in never taking even money on a blackjack. I detest games that offer a 6-to-5 payout vs. the normal 3-to-2. If one is forced to play a 6-to-5 game due to availability, is it still correct not to take even money on a 6-to-5 blackjack using basic strategy? - Herb C.

I begin with Pilarski’s rule #5: Never sit at a 6-to-5 table. Rule #9: At a 3-to-2 table, never take even money/insurance. Let’s begin with even money: Players who are risk-averse, or, proverbially put, plus valet in manibus avis unica quam dupla silvis (which loosely translated from Latin means “A bird in the hand is worth more than two in the woods.”), tend to always take even money. They figure this maxim points out that by passing up even money for your blackjacks, you risk losing a sure thing.

I also recommend NEVER playing 6-to-5 blackjack. Using the math of the game, and using a 3-to-2 payoff as a baseline, a reduction to 6-to-5 payoffs on blackjack increases the house edge by 1.39 percent. Here’s the thing, Herb. Giving an additional 1.39 percent back to the casino is humongous, making it a larger percentage return than the entire house edge on the rest of the game.

Furthermore, because the math for an even money payoff on a 6-to-5 game isn’t advantageous for the casino, the even money option is typically prohibited on a 6-to-5 game. Although I haven’t personally seen it offered, if you come upon it, then I am neutral on taking an even money payoff. Although its expected value (EV) is even, the casino still has a sizable edge over your play.

My best advice, Herb, is to let the casino pay their own light bills, and for you to take the 6-to-5 game out of your gaming repertoire altogether.

Dear Mark: Are you allowed to ask a dealer if he or she is running hot or cold? Jenny S.

Of course, you can, Jenny. As to whether that information will do you any good on a randomly shuffled game, sorry, it won’t. Besides, whatever answer you do get from a dealer doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll be getting the truth. For example, if a dealer is standing on a dead game, arms crossed in a standoffish position, it is a certainty he or she will say “Hot!” That uninterested stance is a dead giveaway that the dealer doesn’t want to be bothered.

Likewise, some dealers will recognize a player from the past—for instance, a non-tipper—and will articulate, unequivocally, how hot they are, hoping the inquiring player will move along.

Personally, I always found it amusing that most players would not wander off to avoid the wrath of my dealing when I told them “I’m hot,” but instead, saw me as some gambling conquest to be made. “Okay, Buddy, take your best shot.” Yet, in the end, I’d beat them hardheartedly, but not because of my averred “I’m hot” reference. Their eventual beat down was always based on the combination of the math of the game and their poor play.

Gambling Wisdom of the Week: “Taunting the odds is a little sexy, a little dangerous, and straddles the line between unimagined success and nauseating failure.” – Chad Millman, The Odds

Dear Mark: I will be in Las Vegas for Super Bowl Sunday and was wondering where you would recommend that I watch the game—and what kind of games should I be playing? - Dean M.

Regarding your gaming question, Dean, I routinely recommend the following: playing perfect basic strategy at blackjack; making a pass line bet and placing the 6 or 8 on a craps game; finding a video poker machine that offers a decent pay schedule; and trying your hand at Baccarat, where the house advantage is either 1.17 percent when betting the bank hand, or 1.36 percent with a player-hand wager.

As for where to hang out for Super Bowl Sunday, as your social/gambling coordinator I recommend a sports book, sports bar, or a casino-sponsored party. I have been to an actual Super Bowl twice, but at least 20 times “virtually” in the Silver State, and I would take the latter every time. Go early for good seating, especially in a sports book, or plan to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with some inebriated jerk that abandoned his attempt to hit the men’s room during a first-half scoring drive. Yep, it happened to me.

Unfortunately, due to the NFL’s crackdown on throwing Super Bowl parties for profit, most Las Vegas casinos just offer FREE Super Bowl party packages for players card members only. (Clearly, Dean, first check where you have a players card.) Once hosted by former professional players or the Jägermeister girls, these parties are but another example of the days of old gone by. Don’t blame the casinos for this one, though, but, instead, this language that pops up at the end of each game: “This telecast is copyrighted by the NFL for the private use of our audience. Any other use of this telecast or any pictures, descriptions, or accounts of the game without the NFL’s consent is prohibited.”

Fortunately, Dean, this exempts sports bars. Therefore, even if offering $1 dogs, drafts, and shrimp cocktails, most restaurants, bars, pubs, etc. have special offers for “Super Sunday,” with some charging an admission fee that usually includes seating, drinks, and food.

Since it’s coming up fast, I would start immediately researching your options. Google “Super Bowl Party Las Vegas 2016” and you will find some all-encompassing lists. As for betting, nothing gets a better cluck-for-the-buck than a sports wager. The Super Bowl will last at least four hours, and even if you were betting the wagers I initially mentioned, your money will last far longer than at a blackjack table, a craps game, on a video poker machine, or on a baccarat game.

Whenever you place a point-spread, you lay 11 to win 10. That means if you want to win $10, you have to wager $11, no matter which team you are betting on. If you win, you will collect $21—your $11 wager plus the $10 you just won. This extra dollar commission, also called a vigorish (a.k.a. vig), is the compensation taken by the house on every sports bet wagered. Exotic proposition bets vary in price.

You might as well spread a slew of $10 prop bets across the board from any number of individual performance props to the color of the Gatorade bath at the end of the game. Oh, and since you’re going to bet the length of the National Anthem, you might as well wager whether the singer flubs, at least, one word of the song. Just think Christina Aguilera and the National Anthem at Super Bowl XLV.

My final advice, Dean, is to take heads on the coin toss, and no matter where you watch the game, make it in close proximity to your hotel’s pillow to support your head after a long day, and night, of Super Bowl partying.

Gambling Wisdom of the Week: “The truth is the Super Bowl long ago became more than just a football store. It’s part of our culture, like turkey at Thanksgiving and lights at Christmas.” —Bob Schieffer, CBS News

Dear Mark: Sometimes I mistakenly use my dad's players card in a slot machine. Would I have any trouble getting a big payoff if they see the card isn't mine? Wayne S.

On just about every players club card brochure, you will find printed in 4-point type the words non-transferrable. Which means that members may not distribute, lend, or in any way allow another person to use their card.

These “revocable” perks-for-play are a privilege granted by the casino in exchange for your father’s past and hopefully future action. When your dad tries to redeem points for comps, most casinos are going to want to see some photo identification.

However, Wayne, that’s for the freebies. Regarding your question, I spoke with a few fellow employees from yesteryear still working on the inside, and they told me that when it comes to the actual payoff of a jackpot, you will still be paid. They won’t, however, issue comps to you by honoring his card. Here’s the kicker: They are going to comp you anyway for a feeding frenzy so that after you chow down, you will hook right back up to another machine allowing them a shot at getting some of their money back.

Casinos make billions by enticing players like you to hand over your hard-earned money. Thus, in the spirit of competition, casinos started offering comps to attract, and keep, loyal slot players. The knowledgeable player uses them to bargain for the best deals, along with lowering the house edge.

Since comps are awarded based on the number of coins you cycle through a machine, you might as well get credit for all those quarters you insert. Just don’t commit the mistake far too many players make, which is to gamble to excess just to receive them.

So, Wayne, being a slot player with the ability to “comp yourself,” you justifiably deserve your fair share of the billion-plus dollars casinos give away in comps each year. Just not on your dad’s card. That is not to say that in the real world of casino play, countless spouses benefit from using each other’s card and seldom get caught.

While we’re at it, I also would recommend that you possess players cards from at least three different casinos. Casinos all too often change their comp guidelines and host personnel. If you have several casinos that you enjoy, you will never have to worry that any changes to their comp policy will ruin your gambling experience. By spreading your action, you will find that the various casinos offer distinctive bargains at different times of the day, week, month, or year.

One final thought since I am probably going to get this question multiple times after this column runs: The machine’s software within does know that you are using a players card. But, using one does not, repeat, not, have any effect on your outcome or the house edge. That’s a separate chip.

Gambling Wisdom of the Week: “It hurt to see you play games that were so one-sided. I dealt the cards, but the aces were in your back pocket.” from “Thunder and Lightning,” off the album Chicago XIV

Dear Mark: I have asked around, but nobody can give me a direct answer. If you get a taxable jackpot, will an expired driver's license be sufficient as an ID? Mary P.

Whenever someone wins $1,200 or $1.2 million, an ID is required for tax purposes because Uncle Sam always claims a piece of the action. Thus, casinos today require proper and current identification (driver’s license, state-issued ID, military ID, or passport), with a photo, before they pay out any winnings. If you can take an airplane flight with your ID, then it will probably be valid enough to claim your jackpot. Which means, Mary, neither your Costco card nor an expired driver’s license is going to cut it.

But don’t despair. If your good fortune lines up three treasure chests, and you cannot produce a valid form of identification, the windfall is still yours. The casino will photograph you and hold your loot in the cashier’s cage until you come back with some bona fide ID.

Likewise, when the casino examines your identification it makes sure you are legally of age to play. The minimum age for gambling varies from state to state, but under-age gamblers will not be paid if they hit a jackpot. Besides being the law in all gaming jurisdictions, denial of a jackpot to a minor has been challenged and upheld in the courts.

Since a minor cannot claim a jackpot, or dish it off to someone of age to split it with later (the eye in the sky is always watching), the jackpot is never paid and the illegitimate winnings are added to the casino’s revenue.

Besides producing a valid photo ID, you will also be asked by the casino for a valid social security or tax identification number. If you decide, “Forget that, I’ve got my rights,” then plan on 25–30 percent of your winnings being withheld, depending on whether the jackpot is more or less than $5,000.

So while an expired driver’s license will be your roadblock when collecting your jackpot, your money still awaits you at the cashier’s cage—a quick trip to the DMV for a license renewal should solve your problem.

Dear Mark: I just wanted to share a story about your column regarding tipping. We were not at a casino, but my mom and I occasionally go out to dinner or lunch. She always offers to pay, and I say I'll get it, so she offers to leave the tip. One time, I looked down at the table to see a quarter. (The meal was probably $45). I said, “Mom, what the heck? A quarter?” She said, “Well the waitress didn't even refill our water.” I thought, “Oh my gawd, she’s been doing this forever!” So now, I pay for the meals and leave the tip. I love my mom, but boy is she a cheapskate! P.S. Please don't use my name. If my mom happens to read your column, she will probably throw a quarter at my head! Anonymousgawd, she’s been doing this forever!” So now, I pay for the meals and leave the tip. I love my mom, but boy is she a cheapskate! P.S. Please don't use my name. If my mom happens to read your column, she will probably throw a quarter at my head! Anonymous

Luckily, because your mom is a bit of a tightwad, it won’t be a roll of quarters that hits you upside your noggin. That is just what happened to me when I broke up a brawl between two elderly ladies fighting over the same machine. It started by one of the two claiming that a jackpot of $1,000 should have been hers as she had just vacated the machine moments earlier.

(By the way, the answer to the “just whose jackpot is it anyway?” question is the person who is sitting in front of the machine and who pressed the spin button, not the person who just vacated the spot. That’s because all of today’s slot machines are equipped with random number generators, with symbol combinations constantly changing every millisecond from the time you insert your last coin until the next occupant hits the spin button.)

Anyway, to get back to your story, longtime readers know my stand on tipping. I tend to tip liberally. There is no need to rehash it here, except that someone has to cover for those, as you call them, “cheapskates.”

Interestingly, my mother was the flip side of that same quarter; she always over tipped. So much so, that when she moved to a small town in northern Michigan, she was repeatedly chastised by friends and relatives for being so generous, often told hard-heartedly, “you make the rest of us all look bad.”

Your mom’s generosity, or lack thereof, does have one bonus, at least for you. Her life as a miser had given her a handsome bank account that—dare I say—may come to you as an inheritance. Mine all went towards TIPS, the acronym for the phrase “To Insure Prompt Service”—that, and refills.

Dear Mark: My brother-in-law swears that after every second win, you double your bet. He says you are keeping the first win after raising the bet and then using house money for the raise. So, his method is $5, $5, $10, $10, $20, $20. If you win six hands in a row, you win $70. Losing six hands in a row costs you $30. What are your thoughts on this system? — Bill L.

Your brother-in-law’s wagering system is a progressive method of betting where the bet size is systematically changed, up or down, across a series of hands according to his own predetermined formula (in this case, $5, $5, $10, $10, $20, $20).

There are an almost endless number of variations of both positive and negative betting progressions distinguished from one another by when the progression is invoked, how much the wagers are raised or lowered, and when the progression is terminated.

The progressive system I have suggested in the past is similar to your brother-in-law’s in that, like him, I set a predetermined percentage increase to follow any winning bet, and I retreat to the table minimum after a loss.

My progressive system goes like this: I increase the wager that follows any winning bet—except the first—by 50 percent. So, the first $5 bet wins, the next bet (also for $5) wins, and now we’re off on the 50 percent gallop of $8, $12, $18, $28, etc. Then we drop to the table minimum—or “flat betting”—after every loss.

Like your brother-in-law, I take a conservative approach and lock up that first $5 win, and wait for a second win before bumping up my bets to engage my variation of a progressive system.

Doing some simple Sister Cyrilla fifth grade arithmetic, here are the totals after six hands: For starters, the typical gambler that flat bets $5 per hand would net $30 after six wins. Your brother-in-law nets $70, and my progressive system returns $76. Every winning hand thereafter, taking into consideration that he bumps up his bets incrementally as he has every two hand by $10, the progressive formula that I use will outperform his.

Every winning streak will have to end at some point. So whether using your brother-in-law’s way or mine, the potential gain when using a positive progressive system when on a eureka moment clearly outperforms flat betting.

Just so long as you don’t employ the Martingale System of betting. The Martingale System is a “negative” progression betting system whereby you do exactly the opposite by increasing your wager size after each subsequent loss. In essence, you, the gambler, double your previous bet (after a loss), leaning on the statistical certainty that sooner-or-later you are bound to win.

Far too many players believe the Martingale System is foolproof because you have to win eventually. The problem with this money management technique is: 1) you do not have an inexhaustible bankroll to take on multiple losses, and 2) the casino owns the bank and sets the rules—like table limits.

Allow me, Bill, to show you how lethal this form of wagering can be. You bet $10 and lose, then $20 to recoup that loss; followed by $40, $80, $160, and, finally, $320. Six wagers and you have just invested $630 to get your measly $10 back. Your next bet needs to be $640, but your $10 games may have a table limit of $500. A string of six defeats and you are up against the table limit, possibly tapped out and still chasing ten buckaroos.

Have you ever met a gambler who hasn’t lost six, eight, or even ten hands in a row? I sure haven’t. Ask any dealer and he or she will tell you that it happens far more often that you can ever imagine.

Gambling Wisdom of the Week: “When you’re on a winning streak, the feeling is better than any other feeling I know.” — Colin Hayes, “Thoughts of a Would-be Professional Poker Player,” Evening Standard magazine, July 15, 1994

Dear Mark: When a casino gives free slot play, does the slot machine “know” you are playing with the casino’s freely given “money?” It seems that spins change when I put my money in the slot machine. Say, for instance, I get $5 free play. With 10 spins at $.50 each, I don’t seem to win anything. As soon I put my money in, the machine seems to change and starts to pay with some credits. — Gerry L.

More and more casinos are rewarding slot players with free slot play, giving slots players a chance to win without having to drop a dime into a machine. Slot aficionados see it as getting something for nothing.

Then there are other casinos that offer something called matching play, whereby you are rewarded with $10 in free play after playing through $10 of your money. Obviously, this offer is not as good a deal as a “something for nothing” promotion.

Your $5 free play offering is a cash reward for your play. Sad to say, that compensation must be used within the casino. That, Gerry, is the drawback of free play; you can’t take the money and skedaddle. In contrast, with cash backs for your action, there is no requirement that you play your cash reimbursement. Like winnings, it is your money, not the casino’s, and you can always pocket it to use as you please.

All things being equal, Gerry, I would rather have cash in hand that I can spend as I wish. Moreover, with free play, most players do get something, but end up with nothing because they tend to play back their free play allowance before they cash out.

The biggest challenge any casino has is getting you to walk through the front door. Free slot play—something for nothing—is one such Pavlovian offering that triggers saliva among slot jockeys.

I have always been amazed at how just $10 in free slot play brings in the slot masses. Unfortunately, you can easily run through that $10 in only a few spins if you’re playing max coins and max lines. Now the casino has you captured within their friendly confines for a total outlay of $10.

The up and up is that the random number generator doesn’t care one iota if you are playing the free play or with your hard-earned money. What might be happening is that you are the victim of your own selective memory, along with a shortened gambling timeline.

So, Gerry, from now on when you play free slot play promotions, humor me and keep track of the number of spins and the number of hits that you get from free play. Then, actively track the same number of spins with your money. As your gambling timeline extends, your returns should be relatively close.

Gambling Wisdom of the Week: “Gambling heats the mind like an oven.” – Henry Ward Beecher, Gamblers and Gambling (1896)

Dear Mark: Long time reader, first time writing in. I am going to Las Vegas in October—my first trip—for the World of Concrete convention at the Las Vegas Convention Center. With tens of thousands of us non-gamblers showing up, I am curious to know if the casino can flip a switch to make the machines hold more, or, if that is not possible, swap out the machines to ones that are tighter. Also, what are some of the expected returns that I will find on slot machines on the Strip where I am staying? Marv B.

No, Marv, there is no magic switch that’s flipped from some secret undisclosed location, nor chip or machine swapping happening to hornswoggle unsuspecting conventioneers out of their dough.

The only time that a machine is swapped out is when management believes it is underperforming or decides to convert the machine to a newer or more popular model. Believe me, Marv, it is no bang-bang deal when they do.

There is a litany of lengthy sequential steps the casino has to take in most gaming jurisdictions to change the percentage return more in the casino’s favor. With thousands of machines on the floor, it is not cost-effective for casinos to vary the payouts on weekends, holidays, or during your concrete convention. Unquestioning tourists are safe—for now.

As for the hold percentage averages for the Las Vegas Strip, they are approximately 11 percent for nickels, 6 to 7 percent for quarters, 4 percent for dollars, and 3.5 percent for five dollars and above.

Dear Mark: How does a casino promise that a specific jackpot will be hit within a certain time frame? For instance, say a machine starts with a jackpot of $25,000 and it is guaranteed to be won by the time it reaches $100,000. If all spins are random, how is this possible? Jim D.

Guaranteeing that the jackpot will be hit within a specific timeframe or sum total doesn’t mean that the random number generator is being manipulated. That would be illegal in every gaming jurisdiction that I am aware of. All displayed results must be selected by a random number generator.

Those “guaranteed-to-hit” jackpots are determined outside of the reel-spinning game by a separate system that governs the jackpot. This system randomly selects a trigger amount somewhere between minimum and maximum points chosen by the casino. The lucky soul who reaches the running total equal to or greater than the trigger amount wins the jackpot.

When the jackpot is finally hit, the running total resets to its minimum, and the system randomly chooses a new trigger point.

Dear Mark: When it comes to video poker games, which do you prefer, Jacks-or-Better, or one of the many Bonus games that are offered? I am figuring it is Jacks-or-Better as you use it as an example more often than not. John P.

There are multiple reasons why I use the same ol’ Jacks-or-Better machines as an example in this column. Not only are they still pretty darn popular, they are less volatile than bonus machines, have a respectable payback percentage, and their strategies are straightforward and more intuitive than bonus games.

Regarding the payback return: here you have to give up a little. The highest paying Jacks-or-Better pay table is a 9/6 (nine for a full house, six for a flush) machine, which, with basic strategy, returns 99.5 percent. Compared to a positive expectation game like 10/7 Double Bonus Poker, you are looking at a return of slightly more than 100 percent over the long haul—that is if each hand is played correctly.

When it comes to volatility, a Jacks-or-Better machine is not as volatile as Bonus Poker, Double Bonus Poker, or Triple Bonus, as adding each additional bonus adds to each machine’s unpredictability. The more volatile a game is, the more your bankroll will fluctuate, which makes you feed the machine more just to keep you in action.

Because the payouts on any Bonus game are reduced on hands like two pairs, three-of-a-kind, etc., but increased on hands like quads, I am not one to endure the swings or keep feeding a machine to chase premium hands.

While many video poker experts believe that a such-n-such machine is the cat’s meow, I like to think that there is a place for many different video poker opportunities. The crux of the choice of any machine comes down to selecting a decent pay table, utilizing expert play that you can easily learn, and what volatility you are willing to tolerate. The games you want to play are the ones that help you achieve your goals.

Dear Mark: Any time you go to a casino, there always seems to be a security guard at the door to greet you. My question is, are there any restrictions about taking firearms into a casino? We hope there are. Sally F.

The adage “A pair of six-shooters beats a pair of sixes” might make for good prose, but luckily today’s casinos are not the gambling halls of the 19th-century American West.

I am with you, Sally. As one who has brought the tidings of a seven-card 21 to many an inebriated player, the last thing I wanted to see was a holstered Glock 9mm while I was pitching cardboard.

In reality, though, there are far too many nuances in firearms laws, which tend to vary from state to state. The best I can do is “wing it” here. No matter what I write, some gun enthusiast that knows far more about firearms than I do will challenge my answer. My following reply is open to scrutiny—so readers, fire away! (But not with your guns blazing, please.)

Let’s take Nevada as an example. Although the state has a liberal open carry policy, you cannot open carry in a casino or other gambling establishment. Likewise, most casinos, but not all, do not allow concealed weapons. Even if you do have a concealed weapons permit, you can still be refused entry because it is a private business. Under most state’s trespassing laws, private property owners have the right to prohibit a person from carrying firearms—concealed or not, regardless of whether the person has a concealed weapons permit—onto their property.As for tribal casinos, any time you go onto a reservation you have effectively entered onto sovereign land and are subject to tribal law. Even if you are carrying a firearm with a permit or license that is valid in the state where the reservation is located, that permit/license might not be valid on the reservation.

The general rule here, Sally, is that there is no general rule. There is simply no way I can make a blanket statement about carrying a firearm into a casino. I can say that over the past three decades, I have never seen anyone openly carry a firearm into a casino. What I have seen is signage specifically stating that firearms, both concealed and open carry, are not permitted. So I believe that most casinos ban the carrying of firearms as a matter of policy. Those who refuse will most likely cross the Rubicon of criminal trespass, and be treated accordingly.

Dear Mark: What do you think of a blackjack player who always stands with 12 or more, no matter what the dealer is showing? The player therefore never busts, and wins all of the times when the house does bust. You would still use basic strategy for splits and doubling. Since the only advantage the house has is the player gets to bust first, wouldn't this simple approach favor the player? Peter C.

I am glad, Peter, you mentioned those two words, “basic strategy,” since basic strategy advises hitting plenty of those stiff hands. When using a neverbust strategy, you are giving the casino a 5 percent advantage, whereas when you use strict basic strategy, you are only giving the casino about a half of one percent edge.

Without considering depletion of the deck, let’s take the player’s 12-hand as an example. With a 12, you have a 9 out of 13 chance of not busting if you take a hit. Likewise, if you decide against hitting, your only chance of winning with a 12 is for the dealer to bust, and he has the same exact chance as you (69.2 percent) of not busting hitting his/her hand.

Granted, Peter, many times you will not win any additional money by hitting, but basic strategy does what it’s supposed to do, which is keep you from losing more of your hard-earned cash than you should. Losing players, Peter, employ a neverbust strategy. The cost: the greenbacks in their wallets.

Dear Mark: What do you think of a blackjack player who always stands with 12 or more, no matter what the dealer is showing? The player therefore never busts, and wins all of the times when the house does bust. You would still use basic strategy for splits and doubling. Since the only advantage the house has is the player gets to bust first, wouldn't this simple approach favor the player? Peter C.

I am glad, Peter, you mentioned those two words, “basic strategy,” since basic strategy advises hitting plenty of those stiff hands. When using a never bust strategy, you are giving the casino a 5 percent advantage, whereas when you use strict basic strategy, you are only giving the casino about a half of one percent edge.

Without considering depletion of the deck, let’s take the player’s 12-hand as an example. With a 12, you have a 9 out of 13 chance of not busting if you take a hit. Likewise, if you decide against hitting, your only chance of winning with a 12 is for the dealer to bust, and he has the same exact chance as you (69.2 percent) of not busting hitting his/her hand.

Granted, Peter, many times you will not win any additional money by hitting, but basic strategy does what it’s supposed to do, which is keep you from losing more of your hard-earned cash than you should. Losing players, Peter, employ a never bust strategy. The cost: the greenbacks in their wallets.

Dear Mark: I read your column religiously and always find it very informative. You recently wrote a column regarding taxes and stated, “Even a Super Bowl bet won from Uncle Louie is taxable.” Does the same apply to winning at an Indian Reservation casino? I have read that Indian land operates as a sovereign nation, so wouldn’t I be excluded from paying taxes? - Ron R.

Every time I mention casino winnings and taxes, gamblers predictably make inquiries about money won at an Indian casino. You, like others, assume that because Indian reservations have a unique tax arrangement with the federal government and are on sovereign land, this somehow excludes your obligation to pay taxes because your windfall happened on their self-governing property.

I am sorry to say, Ron, but Uncle Sam still expects you to pay up. In the eyes of the IRS, whether you are on a cruise ship in the Bermuda Triangle, at an illegal cellar casino in Shanghai, or at the Odawa (Indian) Casino where I live in northern Michigan, any winnings, from whatever form of gambling worldwide, are taxable and must be reported as "Other Income,” on Form 1040 of the U.S. Individual Tax Return.

Dear Mark: I was recently asked to leave a casino by security for, if you can believe this, playing someone else’s leftover $12 credits that they had left on a slot machine and didn’t cash out. Although not banned for life, I was “rudely” told it was against the law, was forced to return the $12, and was told not to come back for 30 days. You have got to be kidding me! What ever happened to “finders keepers, losers weepers?” Matt N.

For starters, Matt, the casino made you give back the money simply because it didn’t belong to you. “Finders keepers, losers weepers” may apply in children’s games, but it is not a defense for taking credits discovered on a slot machine. You are basing your newly found booty on the premise that when something is abandoned, whoever finds it can claim it. Unfortunately, within the casino walls, this raises ethical and legal challenges.While credits left on slot machines on the casino floor do not necessarily belong to the casino, they definitely do NOT belong to the person who finds them. Casinos, as well as some gaming jurisdictions, have specific policies on how to handle abandoned credits. In the joints where I worked, we regarded credits left on a slot machine specifically as “lost property”—like a pair of sunglasses left at a blackjack game—and did our best to find their rightful owner. Today, especially if one uses his or her players card, it is relatively easy to track the previous player. Nevertheless, a tip to you and other slot-playing patrons: before you walk away from any slot machine, don’t forget to press the cash-out button.As for you being eighty-sixed from the casino, well, that might have been a bit over the top. I have never heard of any leftover-credits-playing player being given the heave-ho. That said, that doesn’t mean there are not swindlers who make a living scavenging the millions lost each year by gamblers who forget their stored credits (winnings).The pretender who purposively circles the casino floor looking for orphan credits on a slot machine, or even change on the floor for that matter, can warrant the dreaded permanent eighty-six for making a full-time occupation of cruising the casino eyeing easy pickings. That said, I will buy that you weren’t a credit conniver looking for an easy score.Had I been the slot manager when you played those credits? Your behavior wouldn’t have even warranted a slap on the wrist. I was always one to operate more in the spirit of the law, not the letter of. (Although I must acknowledge that every gaming supervisor will handle your scenario his or her own way.) All I would have told you was that the next time you find credits remaining on the machine, you should inform some slot floor personnel, and then I would have gone on my merry way. Had we found the previous player, I just would have credited him or her $12.Now let’s look at the positive here, Matt, of which there is one. For the next thirty days, you won’t be playing on a machine that has a house edge of up to 20 percent.

Dear Mark: My wife and I are heading to Vegas to celebrate our 45th anniversary. I would like to try blackjack but have never played the game at a casino. Any place you would recommend for a beginner? Rick F.

Before any beginner sits front and center on a blackjack game, I suggest that you do NOT make your first playing experience your classroom. If you are new to blackjack, and you don’t know the rules or any of the playing strategies, you might want to learn the game first on a 25-cent video blackjack machine.

The advantage of a video blackjack machine vs. a live game is the low minimum bankroll requirement needed to play. Many 25-cent video blackjack games, even ones that pay the full amount for a blackjack, exist on the casino floor. Besides lacking the intimidation factor of a live game, they make excellent practice session partners where you can work on basic strategy. Which leads me to the best blackjack tip you will ever get from yours truly: learn basic strategy.

Blackjack, Rick, is a game that many play, but few play well. Basic strategy is nothing more than how you play your hand against the dealer’s “up card.” Playing your hand correctly will bring the house advantage down to well under 1 percent. I recommend that you purchase one of those laminated cheat sheets sold for about $3–$5 in some casino gift shops (a buck on my web site, www.markpilarski.com). Believe me, they are worth their weight in the precious metal rhodium.

As for using a blackjack strategy card on a machine or a live game, yes, it’s absolutely allowed, and a must for newbies learning the game. Using a basic strategy card will give you a concise, definitive play for every starting hand that you are dealt. Eventually, you will learn basic strategy to the point where it becomes an automatic response. While working up to that proficiency, you might as well carry one along in your top pocket to refer to during those tough decision-making moments.

Also consider using a computer to acquire gaming skills without the expense of a live or video blackjack game. At no financial risk, a blackjack computer software program enables you to spot costly trends that you can avoid when playing the real deal. Any knowledge obtained without a cash outlay should make you more money down the road.

So, which blackjack game in Las Vegas is the best? Drum roll, please: that game can be had at the El Cortez. The last time I played there, they even promoted that rare, single deck blackjack game that pays 3-to-2 for a blackjack. The house advantage on this game is .19 percent, making it the best game both downtown and on the Strip. Here’s the kicker, Rick. The minimum bet on this game is only five smackeroos. (Note: Their web page shows Single Deck BJ, 3-to-2 payoff, $3 and $5 minimums.) When I was there, though, it was $5, most likely because it was on a Saturday evening.

Now, Rick, are you going to bring Vegas to its knees at $5 a pop? Hardly, but your anniversary slush fund is going to keep you in the game a whole lot longer there than at any other game in town. Sure, there are other great blackjack games in Vegas, but you’re looking at games with a $25 minimum. They don’t include the low minimum and generous rules of the single deck blackjack game at El Cortez. Locals love this place, as it’s also known for its loose slots and as a decent low-end comp house. So, what’s not to like about the El Cortez? Nothing!

It’s too bad that all casinos aren’t like this, suggesting that no matter where you play, you should still always be shopping for value.

I ran into a slot machine where there is an option to stop one or more wheels, or to stop all of them. Does that change the outcome of the spin, or are the results the same had I not used the touch screen? I am figuring it is divine intervention on where the reels will stop, and not skill. Alan R.

Surprisingly, Alan, I have not crossed paths with this type of machine. I am aware of them, but to tangle with, or write about, I have not to date.

So, Alan, winging my answer here, I am fairly sure that by manually stopping the video reels at what you believe is some syncretistic moment, is not going to have any impact on the outcome. If it did, this would make it a game of skill, which is not legal in any gaming jurisdiction that I am familiar with when it comes to slot machines. Video poker, on the other hand, is completely skill based.

Dear Mark:

A few weeks ago I got into the final round of a blackjack tournament. When we got to the final hand, the three remaining players with chips, me being one of them, had nearly an equal amount of chips remaining. It felt like we were on the game show Jeopardy, and it was the final question. Both player A and B bet all their chips, so I decided to go along and bet all of my chips. The dealer ended up have a blackjack, and we all lost. The rules stated that in the event of a tie, the remaining players are each given $200 worth of chips, and four additional hands were dealt to determine the place winner. Naturally, my luck (cards) went downhill from there, and I ended up in third place. Getting back to that final round before the “playoff,” what should have been my correct move? I blame myself for losing. Nate S.

Instead of blaming yourself, Nate, how about passing it on to something Jean de la Fontaine once said: “Luck is always to blame.”

One important thing you want to remember when playing in a blackjack tournament is that all players are competing against the same dealer. The significance of this is that players tend to have similar outcomes on any given hand. In your example, if the dealer draws a blackjack, the entire table ends up with the same result: a loss.One way to gain ground is by playing each hand correctly and having better cards than your opponents have. However, it is a lot easier to gain ground by betting and playing your hand differently than the others at the table.I was once in that same Final Jeopardy position as you, Nate, and here is the move that I made. Unlike you, I pushed in all my chips on the last hand but for one $5 chip. The others on the table chucked in all their chips on the last hand, only to be wiped out by the dealer having a blackjack. My remaining red chip was enough to win the tournament.

Dear Mark:

In gambling, the term “to one” and “for one” are often used. Any chance you can break down the differences with a few examples for us? I mostly play roulette and video poker. —Fred S.

Anytime, Fred, you notice "for" in the middle of something for something, it indicates that you are not keeping your original wager in addition to your payback. For example, when you see odds quoted as 6-“for”-1, it means you get a total of $6 back for every $1 wagered. Your “net” win, Fred, is five units, or 5-“to”-1. Another way of looking at it is, whenever odds are quoted "X amount for one” and you win, you will “net” one unit less than X.In video poker, if your pay table pays 8-for-1 on a full house with one coin inserted, that coin is subtracted from the credit meter, then the full house adds eight credits when it hits. Your 8-for-1 payback is actually a profit of seven coins.Using “to” one with roulette as an example, if you bet a chip on a particular number, say for instance 22 black and win, you keep your original chip and receive 35 more in winnings. Here, you are paid 35-“to”-1. In a sense, Fred, the effect is the same, whether we call it 36-for-1 or 35-to-1. You have wagered one chip, and after your win you have 36 chips, 35 of which are profit.

Dear Mark:

You have stated that “generally speaking,” on slot machines you get a better return when playing up in denomination. You say dollar machines return better than quarters, quarters than nickels. Does the denomination on a 9-6 Jacks-or-Better video poker game pay more on dollars than on quarters? ~Kathleen C.

On slot machines, Kathleen, yes, “generally speaking,” the higher the denomination the higher the payback percentage. Video poker differs from slot machines in that when you change the pay tables, you change the percentage return. A 9-6 Jacks-or-Better machine is the same game, with the same average paybacks, regardless of whether you are playing dollars, quarters, or nickels.

You identify the payback percentage on a video poker machine by looking at the pay table. Your example, 9-6 Jacks-or-Better game that pays 9-for-1 on full houses and 6-for-1 on flushes, will return 99.5 percent with expert play regardless of the coin denomination. Combining your skills with incentives like cash back and other comps, mathematically, you now have an overall return greater than 100 percent, making it a “positive expectation” game.

Sadly, hardly any 9-6 Jacks-or-Better machines are on the casino floor these days. In their place, the casino now uses a virtual screwdriver and tightens the machine just by changing the flush and full house paybacks. By offering an 8-5 Jacks-or-Better game, one that pays 8-for-1 on a full house and 5-for-1 on a flush, your return drops to 97.3 percent with expert play, and less for mere mortals who just wing it.

Fortunately, with video poker, pay tables are in full view for you to compare and shop for value when you change denominations from nickels to quarters and quarters to dollars and even higher. Once again, as a general rule, you will note that the pay table for the dollar denomination VP machine tends to be more generous than the pay table for the quarter game, and the quarter denomination is heftier than the nickel denomination.

My recommendation here, Kathleen, will always remain the same. Play within your means on machines that offer the best pay tables, use perfect basic strategy, use your player’s card, and over the long run, you will experience more good results than bad.

Dear Mark:

Who originated the $1,200 starting point as the amount that can be taxed when playing slots? It seems when playing today’s higher denomination machines, you get taxable jackpots far more often. ~Sam L.

The $1,200 threshold, Sam, came about 40 years ago when the government and casino industry negotiated that specific sum. Prior to dollar slots, video poker, and progressives, you had to be a high roller playing quarters on a mechanical reel machine to hit a jackpot that large. The $1,200 divide has never changed despite the fact that a $1,200 jackpot is now quite common. With the huge increase of jackpots today, the casino industry would love to see the limit higher since the paperwork is quite time consuming. Unfortunately, don’t plan on this happening anytime soon. If it were raised to, say, $2,500, Uncle Sam wouldn’t be getting his cut of the lesser jackpots that are currently being hit.

Allow me, Sam, a quick word to the wise. Before you fritter away your taxable win, put some ka-ching aside for your namesake Uncle, because when you win, he wins too!

P.O. Box 93104,Albuquerque, NM 87109Email: casinoentertainer@msn.com

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